# Math it like Beckham **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 27, 2006, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-it-like-beckham/346277 "2006-02-27T05:27:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Max\_Carnage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/max_carnage/32/12775_2.png) [@Max\_Carnage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Carnage)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-it-like-beckham/346277/21 "2006-02-27T21:13:32Z")
> [@Snooooopy](#): > > How to get rich: > > 1. Find David Beckham. > 2. Ask him if he will give you two twenties for a ten. > 3. Repeat. 1. Profit!!! ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-it-like-beckham/346277/22 "2006-02-27T21:21:04Z")
> [@RancidYakButterTeaParty](#): > > I can do that sort of thing too, but there are no unkown variables in doing so. When you are on the field of play during a game, you aren’t just doing what you have practiced, because it is impossible to practice for every situation. Some of what you do is from repetition in practice, and some is natural reaction to the current situation. > > I don’t think he is knowingly doing any calculations, but I think it is possible that his brain is doing some sort of calculating before he makes his move. > > It would be similar to a baseball player catching a fly ball in the outfield. How do they know where to go? Is it due to the fact that they have caught every possible hit? Wind conditions, air pressure, speed, height, and so on all play a role in where the ball goes. The pros can be in the right spot in a matter of seconds, just waiting in the spot where the ball eventually lands. They may not be knowingly calculating trig. functions in their head, but it would seem that it is happening in some fashion. Its really not possible for them to be doing the math in their head. An outfielder might not have experience with the exact conditions, but they have probably a hundred thousand other experiences to draw on. The brain uses those experiences, and the input from the senses to determine where to go. Plus, the brain continously checks its answer from what its senses are telling it and makes adjustments accordingly. ---
**Author:** ![Cabbage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@Cabbage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabbage)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2006, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-it-like-beckham/346277/23 "2006-02-27T21:30:37Z")
> [@RancidYakButterTeaParty](#): > > It would be similar to a baseball player catching a fly ball in the outfield. How do they know where to go? Is it due to the fact that they have caught every possible hit? Wind conditions, air pressure, speed, height, and so on all play a role in where the ball goes. The pros can be in the right spot in a matter of seconds, just waiting in the spot where the ball eventually lands. They may not be knowingly calculating trig. functions in their head, but it would seem that it is happening in some fashion. I distinctly remember reading about 10 years ago (sorry, no cite; I can’t remember the source) that it had been determined how outfielders catch a fly ball: The runner moves in such a way so that from their (moving) point of view, the ball appears to move in a straight line. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2006, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-it-like-beckham/346277/24 "2006-02-28T17:45:19Z")
Not to inject a sobering thought into this merriment, but is it possible Beckahm’s self-professed inability to do grade-school problems is a byproduct of brain injury from years of heading the ball? [Here’s one source of links on the subject](http://www.nyssf.org/headingtheballsoccer.html) Maybe it’s not that “maths” (has? have?) changed, but that his processor now works much less effectively than when he was a child. Plus, years of living with a Spice Girl are bound to have had a damaging effect. Sailboat [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/math-it-like-beckham/346277.md?page=1)